Index-clip.



H. A. THOMSON.

INDEX CUP.

APPLICATION FILED NOV- 23, 19].:-

1,261,319 I Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

@ETTQE.

HUGH ALEXANDERTHOMSON, or GLASGOW, SCOTLAND.

INDEX-CLIP.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 2, 1918.

Applieation filed November 23, 1915. Serial No. 62,958.

To (ZZZ who/nit may concern:

Be it known that I HU H ALEX NDER TI-IQMSON, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Glasgow, Scotland, have invented Improvements in Index-Clips, of which the following is a specification. a

My invention relates to index clips or signals adapted tobe ailixed to the leaves of a book or to cards to indicate a particular order of sequence in reading or to mark specialcards or pages. i a

The invention is particularly designed to providea clip that can be easily and quickly attached and which can be made to hold its gripwith a' springderived pressure that can be manually augmented when desired. Other features in view are the provision of a clip adapted to remain open when theparts are pressed into that position, and the provision Ora clip in which lightness of weight in comparison to gripping power is a desideratum as for example when India paper is being dealt with.

1T0 this end the clip comprises nietal gripping members of a resilient character so ofl set and resistingly associated with one another as to cause material inserted between them to reiiiain gripped with a jforceto produce which spring action in a direction .perpendicula'r' to the direction of the gripping force is utilized,-such spring action being due to the resilience of thegripping members themselves so thatno separate springs are required. 7 The members of the clips accord ng o he invention may be made inone or separately, appropriately connected, and may take various forms as will appear froma few examplesnow about tobe described with referonce to theaccompanying drawings.

In the said drawings Figure 1 is a View of a spring sheet metal blank utilized in the production of the clip shown 1n slde and front elevation respectively in Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 4; is a front new of a mod fied form of clip. Fi' 5 is a face .Viewof one of a pair of members ut1l1zed in the productlon of the clip shown in Figs. hand 7 and Figs.

8 and 9 areviews similar to Figs. 6 and 7 of a still further form of clip.

Referringfirst to Figs. 1 to 3, the clip is madeof a blank stamped from spring sheet metal and sheared so as to leave two flexible strips [4 I) attached, in this example, to a central disk piece 0 for carrying the index used for index purposes in any number or color, the said strips in the act of stamping -being so distorted as to be slightly and oppositely inclined to the initial plane of the blank. The free ends of the strips ct, b constitute spring lips (Z c.

The strips a b are offset in opposite directions at or about their centers as clearly seen at f in Figs. 2 and 3 to obtain inclinedsliding and locking contacts and to assume when in position a particular angle to provide a secure snap look when closed and also an open retention position if desired. Thus in Fig; 1 the inclined edges 9 are destined to hold the strips a Z) in locked position while the curved'recesses it serve to hold the strips in open position. The offsetsf permit the locking of the strips to be effected by pressing them together in the lip region, just as pressure exerted upon them in the region of the disk piece 0 will press them apart." The lip ends (Z 6 are preferably cut obliquely to show a fish tail appearance. To produce a clip from the blank shown in Fig. 1 it is necessary to bring the lips cl, e toigether by pressing the flexible strips a, 7)

of the clip. The clip is opened as explained by pressingon the strips a, Z) above the offsets f, until the curved recesses it become engaged; and the grip on the paper is regulatedby the degree of finger pressure on the lips, it being understood that the spring action between the strips will cause the inclined edges 9 to remain in whatever position of frictlonal engagement they may be pressed. The fish tail formation of the strips is mainftained in a modified form when the clip is completed, as shown n Fig. 3, its purpose being to train or guide the paper into the clip' between the gripping members.

To make the clip as light as possible the central disk piece 0 for the index number may be dispensed with the clip rim being suitable way.

An alternative method is to make the clip of two parts as shown in Fig. 4;. Thus i a metal plate offset at f and slotted to receive a spring member which consists of a metal loop 7' shaped so as to coincide as nearly possible with the outer edge of the plate 2". Each leg In ofthe spring member is offset at f where it passes through the slot in the plate and each offset is formed to give, when the clip is closed, a locking effeet which is obtained by urging the offset contact surfaces together, such a result being obtained for example by employing pro- ]ecting abutment means.

edges m upon the plate 2'. The spring and plate are suitably connected at one end as by riveting at a, the other ends forming the lips of the clip. By reason of the slotting and offsetting of the memberspart of member j extends to one side of the plate '5 and part to the opposite side thereof and therefore the clip can be pressed at the upper to remain open and also pressed at the lower part to grip the paper with a pressure which is adjustable in the sense that it can be augmented n'la-nua-lly to overcome frictional re- 'sistance which the spring action alone may be unable to do. The deflection of the spring provides spring pressure and such may be increased by the addition of one or more tongues bent inward from the plate or spring.

Another alternative method of construction would be to dispense with the plate and combine two skeleton springs with an index plate of celluloid or other suitable light-ma terial inserted between them. A clip of this kind and also embodying the feature of supplcmentary spring tongue pressure above referred to is shown in Figs. 5 to 7. Thus in Fig. 5 is shown a spring member offset in a similar way to that already described with reference to Figs. 1 to 3 and having a lip extension in the form of a spring 0. Two such members, each however'provided with a reversely arranged rivet hole 29 of irregular shape, are assembled at opposite sides of an index plate 1" and secured together by a rivet s of a section corresponding to that of the holes ya so that the requisite rigidity to secure spring action equivalent to that of Fig. 3 is obtainable. The spring extension 0 of one member-engages a notch 25 of the other member and the initial distance at 00 is less than that at y so that the spring extensions 0 are caused to exert a spring action supplementing the main spring action. desired, however, the oint at the rivet might be a loose one and the entire springpressure-derived from the extensions 0. The spring extensions 0 when the clip is in open position as'shown in Fig. 6 are deflected from their initial position and shape which latter is advantageously one of a slightly permanent curvature in the gripping direction. In this way there is obtainable a progressive gripping In the figure the abutment is shown in the form of curvedpart action due to fiexure of the tongueshavmg a high degree of uniformity that enhances the gripping action upon material placed between the lips.

In Figs. 8 and 9 the clip comprises parts and j allied to those of Fig. 4:, the plate 2" however having inclined and curved edges f], h, similar to those of Fig. 1 and spring tongues a similar to those already described, the said tongues passing through slots '0 in the member j and being adapted to nately engage the platez' at either her. 9

in accordance with the openmg andclosing of the clip. Thus, as before, the plate 2 and member j are urged together or in a separat ing direction through the resistance offered by the edges 9 h which however, in lieu of being engaged directly by the plate '11 are engaged by. the spring tongues a that move in unison with such plate.

As will be understood in lieu of plate material, spring wire may in some cases be employed, and where weightis to be reduced as far as possible thinner sheet metal may be employed stiffened by stamping ribs thereon in a manner well known.

What I claim is 1. An index clip comprising two resilient juxtaposed-gripping members each having two flat portions and an intermediate offset portion and means embodying coacting inclined edges integral with the gripping members and located in the offset regions aforesaid, adaptedto act as a lock to hold said members open or closed, the-two gripping members being moreover intertwined whereby they are urged into closer intimacy under the action of force exerted by the material of the clip in-a direction other than normal to the planes of the flat portion.

2. An index clip comprising two resilient juxtaposed gripping members each having altertwo fiat portions and an intermediate offset portion, means embodying coacting inclined edges integral with the gripping members and located in the offset regions aforesaid, adapted to act as a lock to hold said members open or closed, the two gripping memhers being moreover intertwined whereby they are urged into closer intimacy under the action of force exerted by the material of the clip in a direction other than normal to the planes of the fiat portions, and equivalent edges integral with the gripping members, adapted to hold the gripping membersaforesaid, adapted to act as a lock to hold.

said-members open or closed, the two gripping members being moreover mtertwmed whereby they are urged into closer intimacy under the action of force exerted in a direction other than normal to the planes of the fiat portions and tongues upon the gripping members engaging the offset portions and exerting force as aforesaid.

4; An index clip comprising two resilient juxtaposed gripping members each having two flat portions and an intermediate offset portion and means embodying coacting inclined edges integral with the gripping members and located in the offset regions aforesaid, adapted to act as a lock to hold said members open or closed, the two gripping members being moreover intertwined Wherer by they arenrged into closer intimacy under the action of force exerted by the material of the clip in a direction other than normal to the planes of the flat portions, the said members terminatin in lips cut obliquely and extending in different directions to produce a fish tail formation adapted to guide material into place between the gripping members.

Signed at London, England, this twelfth day of November, 1915.

HUGH ALEXANDER THOMSON. Witnesses F. J. CoLmsoN ARTHUR F. BURGESS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained. for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

